For this existing 1928 masonry school eligible for listing with the New York State Historic Preservation Office, PKSB Architects developed a 5 story, 86,000 GSF state-of the-art addition on a tight urban site in the city of New York. This challenging addition brought PKSB’s knowledge to bear in renovating historic buildings and working with older structural and cladding systems. The addition and renovation project brought the low voltage systems, electrical, and ventilation systems up to date while maintaining sensitivity to the original school design and budgetary restraints.

PKSB’s team provided detailed Accessibility scoping and ADA compliance that utilized modern ADA lifts and Assisted Listening Systems. New interventions were thoughtfully blended with the existing structure through careful placement and selection of materials. PKSB designed an exterior cladding system using fully insulated Architectural Precast Panels with embedded brick masonry.

This project required detailed local zoning analysis, acoustical analysis, adherence to Local Green Schools Standards, A SEQR submission, Federal Aviation Administration submission and a submission to the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO)